Common Garage Door Problems Troubleshooting Tips
If your automatic garage door at home starts to act up or fails to work altogether, you want to ensure that you call a professional to handle these repairs. Garage doors that open by rolling along tracks that are overhead work with very large springs, and these can be dangerous and even downright deadly when coiled. Garage doors are also very heavy and can cause injury if they should suddenly fall from the track or if the track should pull away from the wall.
While a professional can troubleshoot the problems with a garage door, you might want to know what to expect from them by way of needed service. Note the following.
1. Creaking, groaning or other loud, odd noises as the garage opens and closes
In some cases this can simply be the need for lubrication around the chain that is attached to the garage door and which pulls it up and then bears its weight as it lowers. However, this can also be the aforementioned spring, as it might be rusted and in turn, makes a creaking or even a scraping sound as the garage door lifts and lowers. Rust along the chain or even the tracks can also cause these sounds. It's best to have these addressed quickly as rusted parts can soon mean broken parts and a garage door that slams shut or that won't open at all.
2. Garage door gets stuck halfway
This can be the result of something getting in the way of a sensor for an automatic garage door. If the door senses there is something in its path, it may stop moving altogether. This can also be caused by rusted chains or springs that are now so rusty they refuse to move or rust or other debris on the tracks of an overhead door. If the track is bent or coming away from the wall, this can also obstruct the door's easy movement causing it to stop altogether.
3. The automatic opener won't work
If you've replaced the batteries in the automatic opener and it still won't work, this might be because of a malfunctioning signal. The garage door unit may have had a new signal programmed after repairs or because of damage, and now it cannot communicate with the opener. There may also be damage to the wiring inside the main housing unit so it cannot receive the signals from the opener. A repairperson will be able to check the signals and the wiring and determine which is causing the remote opener to fail.
Businesses like Shutter-Fix specialise in repairing roller doors and can help make sure they are maintained properly.